The two sessions of the event were spread out over six and a half hours, and by the time I arrived at the start of the second session, a crowd of passionate beer connoisseurs, industry insiders and enthusiastic brewers was already on hand to discuss trends at the event and some of the coolest creations on tap.

So much beer was available at the Prado in Atlanta that the event spilled over into two establishments and three locations. This arrangement, while unorthodox, served as a delineating factor between brewers and styles. Also the first stop was a fair trot from the other two venues, which helped to walk off some of those heady ABVs!

My first stop was 5 Seasons Brewing, which co-hosted the event and had a delicious barrel-aged Scotch ale on tap – The Whole Shebang.

I started my sampling with the first beer I saw upon entering (what better place to start?), Boulevard Brewing Company’s Za-Tart Spiced Sour Ale. A refreshing and thirst-quenching low-ABV sour ale, this palate-livening brew served as a perfect appetizer for the beefy barrel-aged concoctions that would follow.

Next up was Ballast Point Brewing’s Rum Barrel-Aged Victory at Sea. According to Ballast Point’s Southeast Sales Manager Chris Marin, the rum barrels employed were quite special.

Marty Jones, who is one of our regular contributors, occasionally had the pleasure of hanging out with the late Michael Jackson when the beloved and slightly quirky authority on beer styles and all things beer came to Denver. “Visiting breweries with Michael was like hitting blues clubs with Muddy Waters or going to working class rock bars with Bruce Springsteen,” said Jones. 

Like others, Jones found Jackson to be a humble, engaging and funny man in addition to his thoughtful and encyclopedic approach to beer. I never had the pleasure of meeting Jackson, so I asked Jones if he would venture a guess at what the “Beer Hunter” might say about the current state of craft beer and brewing seven or so years after his seminal blog went dark.

“That’s a real toughie,” said Jones. “Perhaps something right to the point of it all: ‘It has certainly come a long way, hasn’t it? It’s quite delightful, isn’t it?’”

Marty Jones

An acclaimed beer journalist, publicist and "Brewbadour", Marty Jones is one of Colorado's most ardent promoters of craft beer and its culture. The Complete Joy of Homebrewing, an English degree and a few basic guitar chords changed his life for the better. Learn about his brewery-helping efforts at www.martyjones.com and hear his beer-blessed music at www.martyjones.net.

Nora McGunnigle

Nora is a freelance food and beer writer who lives in New Orleans. Her work can be found in Louisiana Kitchen and Culture, among other magazines, and she is a regular contributor to Southern Brew News, Alcohol Professor, Eater NOLA, the Gambit and NOLAbeerblog.com. Follow her on Twitter @noradeirdre. 

Brewery Openings Continue To Rise

Using data from Symphony IRI, Nielsen and in-house information, the Brewers Association reported that 2014 was another positive year for the expansion of beer brewed by smaller, independent breweries. Overall volume was up due to the BA’s change in its definition of craft brewer, but other signs confirmed a boom in the small brewer segment.

The U.S. brewery count surpassed 3,200 and the number of brewery licenses is above 4,500, indicating many new breweries are in planning. Thirteen states now boast more than 100 breweries. "Consumers are making a conscious choice to buy and try the plethora of options produced by small and independent craft brewers," said Bart Watson, chief economist of the BA.

The BA statistics are in contrast to the annual data released by the Beer Institute, whose figures indicate over-all growth in beer sales are flat. Using a domestic tax paid estimate, the BI reported a decrease in over-all beer sales of 0.8 percent through the first 11 months of 2014. The number of barrels being taxed during that period dropped by 1.4 million barrels.

From the Twitter bag:

Editor's Note: We are journalists and seek to cover the entire beer industry, particularly when major brewers start adopting new responses to craft brewers.

During the fledgling days of Bell's Brewery, founder Larry Bell found himself in a bind. He needed to drive around Kalamazoo, Michigan to complete deliveries of his popular Amber Ale, but his seven-year-old daughter Laura was sick and home from school. While Bell labored to get the brewery off the ground, his wife worked a regular job to help pay the bills. So, he strapped Laura into the van with some paper and crayons and hit the road.

Shortly after driving past Laura's school, Amberly Elementary, Bell looked over and noticed his little girl had sketched a beer label called Bell's Amberly Ale. "This label included a logo and everything," he recalled. "It featured a guy with crazy eyes and hair sticking straight up. Laura called him 'Mr. Ale.' If the school ever saw this, I knew I'd be in trouble."

That morning twenty years ago helped inspire him to double his efforts to keep Bell's Brewery going in a time when craft breweries were scarce and struggling. He saw the brewery as a legacy for his daughter and son. Today, Bell's Brewery ranks as the oldest and largest craft brewery in the state of Michigan.

As the sales of flavorful beer continue to soar, there’s seemingly no end to the outpouring of affection for it by a growing cadre of beer lovers. But as a wave of dollars flows into the craft beer business, it begs a question: who is going to be making the flavorful beer -- and the money that goes along with it?

From artisan breweries to microbreweries and those in the realm of a million barrels a year – or trying to reach that milestone, three patterns emerge over the past year. Some craft breweries are finding unique paths toward growth through bank loans and private sales. Others are taking private equity investments as a path to reaping financial rewards while remaining in the brewing business. A third group has elected to reap all the rewards by selling their breweries outright.

What this means for the market segment of craft remains to be seen.

Once in a while, brewers come along who knows how to hit taste buds in a way that inspires deep appreciation and loyalty among beer drinkers and imitation by other brewers.

In this issue, Owen discusses how the approach to weissbier by Georg Schneider led to its great popularity and eventually to the complex and more modern Dunkels Weissbier, a style perhaps underappreciated by Americans.

In a familiar story that warrants some expert detail, the tale of Ken Grossman and his creation of the American Pale Ale comes to life in a technical discussion by Owen that sheds light on this beer’s ability to start a 20^th Century aroma and taste bud revolution.

Surely there will be more discoveries in the future that change the consumption habits of beer drinkers around the world. But until the next moment of gonzo creativity arrives, we’re left to celebrate those discoveries we enjoy in the present.

Cheers!

Dunkel Weissbier

While we debate whether "craft" beer is the right term for tasty creations from Sierra Nevada Brewing and the newly opened nanobrewery down the street, how about we discuss a different word? One that’s been doing big damage to the image of beer and beer culture for decades: “alcoholic beverage.”

Could there be a worse term for classifying the life-enhancing, health-improving, fellowship-inspiring creation that is beer? Except for maybe “junk food,” alcoholic beverage is a pejorative, worst-case-scenario/ illness descriptor unlike any in the consumer world. Nobody consumes cancer-victim smoking devices, caffeine-addict drinks and morbid-obesity doughnuts.

Yes, a number of beer drinkers quaff in excess and may be alcoholics. Obviously that’s a serious problem for those people and their families and communities. No doubt about it. But should all beer makers, sellers and drinkers get branded with the scarlet A-word and lumped in with alcoholism? Heck no. We visit breweries and ask for our AHA (American Homebrewers Association) discount, not an AA perk. Besides, the average beer holds a single-digit percent of alcohol and over 90 percent water. Wouldn’t “hydraulic beverage” be a more accurate term?